It is not so much about being better, more about reliability. The DSG box, on paper, is a great thing with ultra fast gear changes making it accelerate quicker than the equivalent manual box, plus better economy to boot. Unfortunately the DSG is a fiendishly complex thing which has a reputation for problems. Now I don't know what exactly a passat B8 is, if it is new or used, but if it is new and you planned to keep it no more than 3 years (i.e, getting rid of it before the warranty expires) it might not be such a bad idea. But if this is a 2nd hand car you are thinking of buying, my advice would be to get the manual (assuming it had to be a passat), or if you really fancy auto, get something similar but with a torque converter auto (though that will mean lower MPG and higher emissions). One other thing, the DSG gearbox is used in 2 different forms. The 'dry clutch' version is used in smaller applications, whereas the 'wet clutch' version is used with larger engines. I don't know which is likely to be fitted to your passat, but going by what I have read on the forum, the dry clutch version is much more likely to go wrong. Having said that, I'd still avoid it, not worth the potential grief!

Looks like from going through the Car by Car Reviews section that the B8 version is the latest model. Whether that means it has a 'wet clutch', so is bet-ter in terms of reliability, I'm not sure. As you and others have said, no-one as yet has cracked dual clutch gearboxes in terms of long-term reliability: KIA/Hyundai is currently offering their take on this system on some of their newest models (i30 and the Ioniq/Niro), so only time will tell.

The comments by SLO here (others, including HJ himself, have said much the same on other threads in recent years) about DSG gearboxes generally suffering from hesitation from a standing start (whether dry or wet clutch versions) is valid too, especially when mated to high torque engines such as diesels.

Be interesting to see Kia's experience with 7 year warranties on their DCT boxes